NCAA Basketball: Mock 2020 NCAA Tournament Final 4 predictions
Neil Adler – @DAMNTWIN
A pair of powerhouse programs are battling for a spot in the 2020 NCAA Tournament title tilt, and this Final Four face-off is indeed an epic encounter.
No. 1 seed and top-ranked Kansas, which won the South Region by knocking off the defending national champions, Virginia, in the Elite Eight, will bout with No. 3 seed Michigan State. The Spartans, in the East Regional final, upset No. 1 seed and Big Dance darling Dayton to advance to their second-consecutive Final Four.
The Jayhawks and MSU each boast one of the premier inside-out tandems in all of collegiate hoops. Kansas’ duo of All-Americans Devon Dotson, a guard, and Udoka Azubuike, a center, is virtually impossible to contain.
However, the Spartans will respond with their own electric combination of All-American guard Cassius Winston and bruising forward Xavier Tillman Sr.
From a talent standpoint, the Jayhawks probably have a slight edge, although Michigan State’s bench is a bit deeper. The Spartans are a top-25 outfit nationally in rebounding, at 40.6 boards a game, and MSU’s prowess at obtaining second-chance points via the offensive glass is a critical factor to watch.
Conversely, Azubuike is a beast in the paint, with his staggering 74.8 field-goal percentage and keen ability to mow down his opponents.
The Spartans share the ball with excellent precision, collecting about four more assists per affair than Kansas. Scoring is roughly identical, but the Jayhawks do have the advantage as it pertains to points allowed.
Both crews commit nearly 13 turnovers per meeting, and that’s something to monitor because easy buckets out in transition will prove vital.
Kansas and Michigan State are fairly even in terms of shooting from the field and from beyond the arc, but the Spartans are decidedly better from the charity stripe. That is a monumental aspect to observe, since these squads are physical, and a ton of fouls could get whistled.
This duel is extremely challenging to predict. The Jayhawks have amounted to the top unit across the country for a while now, yet Michigan State is riding an abundance of momentum after somewhat struggling out of the gates at the start of the 2019-20 campaign.
Hall of Fame head coaches Bill Self and Tom Izzo each seek their second grand prize. Winston is a true leader and has achieved so much in this stanza, despite having to overcome tremendous personal obstacles.
In the end, though, Dotson and Azubuike are just a tad too much for the Spartans. Kansas moves on to the national-championship contest after besting Michigan State in an exhilarating Final Four clash.